Online advertising is considered a good way to target and reach consumers, but nearly two-thirds (63%) of Americans say they tend to ignore Internet ads, according to a new survey from Adweek Media and Harris Interactive.
Among those who ignore Internet ads, 43 percent say they ignore banner ads the most and 20 percent say they ignore search engine ads the most. Smaller percentages say they ignore television ads (14%), radio ads (7%) and newspaper ads (6%); just 9% of Americans say they don’t ignore any of the listed types of ads.
There is little difference in the ads that men and women say they tend to ignore the most. Forty-two percent of men and forty-five percent of women say they ignore Internet banner ads the most while twenty percent and twenty-one percent respectively, say they ignore search ads the most. Somewhat fewer say so about television ads (15% and 13%), radio ads (7% and 8%), and newspaper ads (6% and 5%).
Older Americans say they ignore ads on TV the most-one in five of those 55 years and older say they ignore TV ads (20%), compared to 14% of those 45-54 years, 13% of those 35-44 years, and just 9% of those 18-34 years. Conversely, younger Americans are more likely than those older to ignore radio ads the most (11% of those 18-34 years do, compared to 6% of those 55 years and older). Also, while over two in five in all age groups say they ignore Internet banner ads the most, those aged 35-44 are most likely to say this, as almost half ignore these ads (47%) compared to between 42% and 43% of the other age groups.
Those who have more education are more likely to ignore online advertisements-46% of both those who have some college and those who are college graduates say they ignore banner ads, compared to just 40% of those who have a high school degree or less. One-quarter (23%) of those who have graduated from college say they ignore search engine ads, compared to 17% who have a high school or less education. Those with a high school or less education, however, are more likely to ignore television ads (17% versus 12% of those who have gone to college).